By Erin Free
With Rebel Wilson’s Aussie-shot directorial debut The Deb mired in ugly controversy, the feel-good musical is currently in danger of not getting in front of audiences.
Getting a film made in Australia has always been tough, and it’s probably tougher now than it’s ever been. Getting a homegrown film up and running is always easier when it comes with the imprimatur of an Aussie talent with some international cache, which helps both with overseas sales and getting audiences into local cinemas, while also giving the film an undeniable stamp of legitimacy and well-earned sense of optimism. All of this, of course, makes the current fate of the Australian film The Deb all the more sad and disappointing. Even worse is the fact that this film not only got off the ground, but it actually got finished, and the film even has companies interested in releasing it. But a broiling gaggle of fights, accusations, denials and legal proceedings now has The Deb in danger of never making its debut.
The Deb is the first behind-the-camera effort of comic actress Rebel Wilson, who jumped from the ribald Aussie comedy of Fat Pizza, The Wedge and Bogan Pride onto the international stage via scene stealing appearances in Bridesmaids, Pitch Perfect, Bachelorette and Night At The Museum: Secret Of The Tomb. The Deb should have marked another positive jump forward for the actress, and it all began in the happiest of ways with a talented young Australian writer called Hannah Reilly. Reilly wrote the hit stage musical The Deb (pop singer Meg Washington penned the songs, and also worked on the story), which caught the eye of Rebel Wilson, who brought the writer through her mentoring initiative, which was created to support young women in the industry. Wilson oversaw Reilly’s adaptation of The Deb, and the trouble on the film allegedly began when the comic actress sought a major writing credit from The Australian Writers Guild during the film’s post-production. Wilson, however, was knocked back, and was instead granted a lesser “additional writing by” credit, which she was allegedly unhappy about.
From there, the film has been beset by a rolling swathe of ugly problems, with an angry Rebel Wilson accusing The Deb producers Amanda Ghost, Gregor Cameron and executive producer Vince Holden via an Instagram post of “embezzling funds” from the movie as well as “absolute viciousness and retaliatory behaviour.” The trio sued Rebel Wilson for defamation, but the friction has gotten worse, threatening to completely overshadow the feel-good flick, which revolves around two girls, Taylah (Natalie Abbott) and Maeve (Charlotte McInnes), in a small Australian town who are preparing for a debutante ball. Interest around the film hit a peak of negativity recently at The Cannes Film Festival, where McInnes (who starred in the stage version of The Deb) performed a musical set aboard the offshore luxury liner of billionaire industrialist, philanthropist, film producer and The Deb financier Len Blavatnik (Conclave, The Zone Of Interest), who has a number of other films at the festival.
Even though Rebel Wilson wasn’t in attendance herself, she began posting from the official Instagram account of The Deb…and it wasn’t pretty. “Charlotte MacInnes in a culturally inappropriate Indian outfit on Len Blavatnik’s luxury yacht in Cannes – ironically singing a song from a movie that will never get released because of her lies and support for the people blocking the film’s release. So glad you got your record deal Charlotte at the expense of the 300 people who worked on The Deb and really wanna see it released.” Though not on the luxury liner, Wilson (who has also alleged on-set impropriety between Charlotte McInnes and the film’s producers) is believed to have made her comments based on an Instagram post of McInnes’ musical performance uploaded by none other than Pulp Fiction producer Lawrence Bender, who was there. “My only intention was to celebrate this young person’s incredible talent. The last thing I expected was for somebody to take this and turn it into something negative,” unknowing bystander Bender told Hollywood industry bible Variety. “It’s just very disappointing.”
Even the shop from whence McInnes purchased her apparently offending outfit has weighed in on Wilson’s comments. “Please take a moment to educate yourself on fashion history,” a rep from fashion outlet One Vintage posted online. “It’s an original 1970s handmade American ensemble, sourced from us at One Vintage, and not an ‘Indian outfit.’ Your attempt to discredit and mislabel a piece rooted in authentic craftsmanship does more than miss the mark…it reveals more about your intentions than the outfit ever could.”
With a strong local cast (Shane Jacobson, Tara Morice, Steph Tisdale, Hal Cumpston and Wilson herself all appear), a rock-solid, commercially sound premise, and a talented, internationally renowned Aussie woman both behind and in front of the camera, The Deb has the makings of a possible hit, but the film is now in big trouble, stuck sadly in traction after its Toronto Film Festival debut in September. According to various sources, the feel-good stylings of The Deb had piqued strong interest from distributors, but after Rebel Wilson’s antagonistic online posts, they’re now all running scared, and the film is in danger of falling through the cracks.
Film is a collaborative artform, and to see a promising Aussie flick like The Deb possibly scuttled by ugly in-fighting by those at the top of the filmmaking tree is a true slap in the face. “What should have been a joyous experience – a dream come true – has now been overshadowed by unnecessary drama,” Hannah Reilly has told Variety. “It’s been a heartbreaking and baffling turn of events.”
Stay tuned for more on The Deb.
